High "g" protection system

Abstract

A high "g" protection system for a crewmember of an aircraft includes a seat and an upper torso support. The upper torso support is preferably secured to the crewmember's suit and to the seat. The torso support has a support plate and a support member which allow the crewmember to be supported and restrained while in a leaned forward or crouched position while enhancing the crewmember's tolerance to "g" forces. Another embodiment of the invention uses a pair of approximately positioned armrests to provide torso support. The seat is provided with a repositionable seat pan which allows the crewmember's knees to be raised bringing him into a more crouched position or, conversely, allows the crewmember's knees to be lowered reducing the crewmember's angle of crouch, as may be desired.

I claim: 
     
       1. A high "g" protection system for the crewmember of an aircraft, comprising: a suit to be worm by the crewmember;   a rigid support plate securely mounted on approximately a chest portion of said suit;   a seat, said seat having a backrest and a seat pan rotatably connected to a lower portion thereof;   a support member having a lower end secured to said seat and an upper end connected to said support plate by means of a U-joint, said U-joint allowing pivotal movement of the breast plate and said support member, said support member being extendable in order to provide support to the upper torso of the crewmember when in a forwardly crouched position and to allow the crewmember to be in a generally upright position;   a spring mounted within said support member and connected to said U-joint, said spring exerting a force on said U-joint plate tending to support the crewmember in the desired forwardly crouched position, the magnitude of the force exerted on said plate being proportional to the angle of crouch to increase proportional to the magnitude of the "g" force exerted on the occupant;   means for rotating the seat pan into a desired position in order to alter the angular position of the legs of the crewmember relative to the torso thereof;   an inflatable collar secured to said suit; means for inflating said collar during the ejection of the crewmember in order to maintain the proper positioning of the head of the crewmember in relation to the torso and provide flotation to the crewmember in the event of water landing;   means for disconnecting said support plate from said support member;   a helmet to be worn by the crewmember, said helmet being perforated for emission of air therewithin in the event of an ejection in order to quickly equalize air pressure within said helmet with air pressure of the surrounding environment.   
     
     
       2. The system of claim 1, wherein the crouched position places the crewmember's upper torso at an angle inclined fore of the z axis of the aircraft, the angle being within the range of approximately 0° to 45°. 
     
     
       3. The system of claim 2 wherein the angle is approximately 24° . 
     
     
       4. A high "g" protection system for a crewmember of an aircraft, comprising: a seat; and   support means for supporting the upper torso of said crewmember while seated in said seat in a forwardly crouched position, said support means allowing selective movement by the crewmember from a generally upright position in said seat to a forwardly crouched position under normal and high "g" flight conditions, said forwardly crouched position being within a range of angle of crouch of 15° to 45° fore the Z axis of the aircraft, said support means providing substantially greater support in the Z direction to the upper torso of said crewmember when in a forwardly crouched position then when in a generally upright position, said support means bearing against the chest of said crewmember when in a forwardly crouched position, said support means reducing spinal loads on the crewmember from "g" forces substantially in the Z axis of the aircraft when said crewmember is in a forwardly crouched position.   
     
     
       5. The system of claim 4 wherein said support means is connected to said seat. 
     
     
       6. The system of claim 4 also including a suit worn by the crewmember and wherein said support means includes a rigid support plate securely attached to the suit. 
     
     
       7. The system of claim 4 wherein said seat comprises a seat pan and a backrest, said seat pan connected to said backrest, at least a portion of said seat pan being rotatable relative to said backrest in order to raise the legs of the crewmember to enhance the "g" protection provided the crewmember while in said seat. 
     
     
       8. The system of claim 7 further including a rotating means for selectively effecting rotational movement of said seat pan. 
     
     
       9. The system of claim 8 wherein said rotating means includes: a bladder positioned adjacent to the seat pan, said bladder mounted on an underside portion of said seat pan, said bladder being inflatable in order to raise at least a front portion of said seat pan in order to rotate said seat pan about the connection of said seat pan to said backrest; and   inflating means for inflating said bladder.   
     
     
       10. The system of claim 9 further including a "g" sensor operably connected to said inflating means in order to cause said bladder to be inflated upon being subjected to acceleration forces exceeding a desired threshold magnitude. 
     
     
       11. The system of claim 6 wherein said rigid support plate forms a part of the crewmember's suit and also including a support member, said support plate pivotally connected to said support member in order to allow a limited range of rotatable movement of the upper torso of the crewmember. 
     
     
       12. The system of claim 4 wherein said support means is firmly secured to a structural member of the aircraft. 
     
     
       13. The system of claim 6 wherein said support means includes a support member, said support member pivotally connected to said support plate, said support member being extendable in order to allow selective movement of the crewmember between a forwardly crouched position and a generally upright position during flight of the aircraft as "g" forces warrant. 
     
     
       14. The system of claim 4 wherein said support means exerts a force on said crewmember which increases with increasing angle of forward crouch. 
     
     
       15. A high "g" protection system for crewmember of an aircraft, comprising: a seat, said seat comprising a seat pan and a backrest, said seat pan connected to said backrest, at least a portion of said seat pan being rotatable relative to said backrest in order to raise the legs of the crewmember to enhance the "g" protection provided the crewmember while in said seat;   rotating means for selectively effecting rotational movement of said seat pan, said rotating means including a bladder positioned adjacent to the seat pan, said bladder mounted on an underside portion of said seat pan, said bladder being inflatable in order to raise at least a front portion of said seat pan in order to rotate said seat pan about the connection of said seat pan and said backrest, and also including inflating means for inflating said bladder;   support means for supporting the upper torso of said crewmember while seated in said seat in a forwardly crouched position, said support means reducing loads on the spine from "g" forces substantially in the Z axis of the aircraft.   
     
     
       16. The system of claim 15 also including a "g" sensor operably connected to said inflating means in order to cause said bladder to be inflated upon being subjected to acceleration forces exceeding a desired threshold magnitude.